Yea the thing about samurai lady is that she's so fast, you're probably often going to have to wait for enemy units to act first before she can use her focus skill (including giving your opponent the option to use SS or open skills). Furthermore, while 4 agi is fast, it's still within that range where you'd have to compete against other units for agi rolls. For the most part, she's just a 60 hp, 30 damage, 4 agi unit if you just throw her into a file. Now, if you combine her with abilities that grant focus instantly... then we might have something.

Scientiafide wrote:Yea the thing about samurai lady is that she's so fast, you're probably often going to have to wait for enemy units to act first before she can use her focus skill (including giving your opponent the option to use SS or open skills). Furthermore, while 4 agi is fast, it's still within that range where you'd have to compete against other units for agi rolls. For the most part, she's just a 60 hp, 30 damage, 4 agi unit if you just throw her into a file. Now, if you combine her with abilities that grant focus instantly... then we might have something.

The only unit I can see her working with is feline kin knight (that merc nation one that does at+20, then next turn engages), and even then, while Feline Kin knight is half-decent, you're throwing three copies of two cards that are both susceptible to the usual focus-breaking technology together.

It's not so much a case of "what's wrong with them" as "what's right with them"?

Honestly, I just think focus is a garbage mechanic on a whole. Engaging screws it, SSing/grimming the unit screws it, and for the auto focus stuff, just out-agility the thing and win. There are just far, far too many answers to focus mechanics. Maybe if focus remained after revive and didn't wear off until the focused unit actually used the focus skill.

Actually i agree with DG. Having played with multiple units that need a 'wasted' turn first on focussing, i can honestly say it's abit gimmicky with openspam and whatnot killing it again. In alot of cases there are to many passive turns involved trying to make it do something.A simple solution might be adding "....this unit gets focussed till end of next turn. Do [Dmg:Atk] to a random unit in rng."

Man I missed the huge argument on the smaller Errata changes, oh well. However I'll be here for the EX ones that should prove to be entertaining enough

His blood is of iron and his heart of glass He survived through countless battles Not even once retreating Not even once being victorious The bearer lies here alone Thus, my life needs no meaning This body is made out infinite swords

Scientiafide wrote:Yea the thing about samurai lady is that she's so fast, you're probably often going to have to wait for enemy units to act first before she can use her focus skill (including giving your opponent the option to use SS or open skills). Furthermore, while 4 agi is fast, it's still within that range where you'd have to compete against other units for agi rolls. For the most part, she's just a 60 hp, 30 damage, 4 agi unit if you just throw her into a file. Now, if you combine her with abilities that grant focus instantly... then we might have something.

The only unit I can see her working with is feline kin knight (that merc nation one that does at+20, then next turn engages), and even then, while Feline Kin knight is half-decent, you're throwing three copies of two cards that are both susceptible to the usual focus-breaking technology together.

It's not so much a case of "what's wrong with them" as "what's right with them"?

Honestly, I just think focus is a garbage mechanic on a whole. Engaging screws it, SSing/grimming the unit screws it, and for the auto focus stuff, just out-agility the thing and win. There are just far, far too many answers to focus mechanics. Maybe if focus remained after revive and didn't wear off until the focused unit actually used the focus skill.

Yea I agree. I think the action skills are more of an alternative to standby to be honest. I can't help but feel that I've seen cards around that say, "target unit is focused" or "all allied units are focused." Instantly giving units the focused state would be a huge advantage over using a focus-granting action skill, especially if you do so to several units and/or if their focused abilities are startskills. Maybe there aren't enough of those types of cards to make a file, I haven't really looked into it though.

I'm running a red/black focus rush using Samurai and Yug. It is 9-1 and it's a really good mechanic. You are susceptible to engage/open/ss death, however, you have to look at the control aspect of playing this kind of file.

Alteil is often a back and forth dance of one player winning a turn, and then the other player retaliating by hitting an SS/open/whatever next turn. However, it's far more advantageous when you can wipe your opponent in one turn, rather than kill a single unit in one turn. When you focus a unit, you are setting up your units to field wipe next turn and at the same time preventing them from possibly activating an SS earlier. Field wipes are also great times to hit a Death's Embrace or Bitter Destiny.

It's similar to not killing a unit with 10 HP so you can salamander it next turn and get a huge advantage as opposed to a minor advantage of killing the unit immediately.

Further, by focusing your units, the opponent's moves become VERY predictable because they will be desperate to stop the focused unit from field wiping by activating an SS/Katana open/whatever. You can capitalize on this.

Besides that, think about all the times you're going to use standby anyway. Well, now you can focus instead and the next unit your opponent drops will likely be insta-killed.

This file has given me a lot more versatility than my main Lawt rush file; don't underestimate Focus.